Method and apparatus for rolling sheets



Sept. 22, 1 931. R, J WEAN 1,824,001

METHODAND APPARATUS FOR ROLLING SHEETS Filed Oct. 5l. 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet l tQ nu@ i Y l0 DE i Vl DQ W "5 04:3

R. J. WEAN Sep1.22, 1931.

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ROLLING SHEETS Filed oct. 51, 1929 2 sheets-sheet 2 INVNToR r Vfafw.

Patented Sept. 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE RAYMOND. J. WEAN, OF WARREN, OHIO, ASSIGNOR T THE WEAN ENGINEERING COMPANY, INCORPORATED, 0F WARREN, OHIO, A CORPORATION 0F OHIO METHOD ANI) APPARATUS FOB.A ROLLING SHEETS Application filed October 31, 1929. Serial No. 403,740.

The present invention relates broadly to metal rolling, and more particularly to the rolling of light steel sheets from relatively heavy steel bars.

At the present time it is customary in the art to which the present invention relates to follow certain fundamental practices in the rolling of sheets of the general character herein contemplated, regardless of the size or '10 gauge of the finished product. The bars possible elongation. When the bars have been heated to the desired temperature, they are ordinarily withdraw'from the heating furnace in pairs and passed, one following t-he other, between chilled iron rolls until they are sufficiently reduced in thickness to permit matching of the sheets. After this matching operation is accomplished by placing one sheet directly on top of the other, the pack is again passed and re-passed through the rolls until loss :of heat hmders further rolling. l

Inasmuch as the primary object of rolling is to effect a uniform reduction in the thickness of the original bars, it is evident that the cost of producing the finished sheets will vary directly with the number of rolling passes required, in view of which every effort is made to reduce the number of passes to a minimum consistent with good quality. To this end, the most economical method results from maintaining a maximum pack thlckness and a minimum pack length during the various stages of the rolling process. Stated another Way, it is desirable to work a short thick pack rather than a long -thm pack, because the rolls exert greater rolling force on a thicker pack. At the same time, shorter packs require less'time to pass through the rolls so that with a short thick pack a greater number of passes may be accomplished 1n a given time.

After the original bars have been rolled separatel zmatched and re-rolled until'cooled .below roln temperature, the pack .1s conveyed to a oubling apparatus etectlve for overlapping the rsheets on a line through the center of the pack. In accordance with present daypractices, a doubler is provided for each heating lfurnace and is ordinarily located at some point intermediate the discharge end of the furnace and the rolls, and laterally offset with respect to the line of rolling thereof'. Inasmuch as such an arrangement provides a doubler for each furnace, it is apparent that a separate doubling crew is required for the operation of each doubler, and the working time of the doubling machine and doublingcrew is governed by the output of a particular furnace.

Following the doubling operation, the packs are again introducedinto the furnace for re-heating preparatory to further rolling. After the desired heating has been effected, the doubled packis withdrawn from the furnace, passed and re-passed through the rolls until the desired gauge or thickness is effected. In the case of medium and lighter gauges, it is not possible to roll the packs to gauge at the second heating, and a third heating and rolling is required. In the event of a third heating, the pack is again doubled to expedite the finished rolling, thus forming a pack of eight (8) sheets at thisstage of the process.

While many variations as to the number Vof passes as well as the s stems of rolling have .been developed, doubling of the general nature referred to invariably forms a part of the process of light gauge sheet rolling when medium and light gauges are being produced.

It will be further apparent to those skilled in the art that the installation of doubling equipment, required in the majority of cases for the reasons referred to, not only represents a considerable increase in the cost of mill operation, but interferes with the orderly sequence of operation by reason of the congestion necessarily produced intermediate the furnace and the rolls.V Furthermore, inasmuch as such doubling equipment is not required at all in the event of heavy gauges, fr uently referred to as single iron, the dou ling equipment stands idle durin such period as heavy gauges are being prouced.

For medium gauges this equipment is only utilized following the first rolling, or approximately 50% of the time, while in the making of light gauges which require three heatings and subsequent rolling the doubler is operated for only two of the rolling periods or approximately 66% of the time.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the standard mill layout in which the doubling apparatus constitutes what may be termed an integralpart of each mill unit, automatically limits the productivity of such doubling mechanism to the operating requirements of the particular unit of which it forms a part.

The present invention relates to, an improved method and apparatus by means of which it is possible not only to materially decrease the cost of a complete mill installation of given capacity` but also to increase the production thereof, avoid any objectionable congestion or interference, decrease the number of workmen required for the handling of a given output, and effect, at the same time, a greater uniformity in the successive sheets produced.

In the accompanying drawings I have shown for purposes of illustration only, in a more or less diagrammatic manner, a preferred embodiment of my invention.-

In thedrawings:

F igure 1 is a top plan view of one form of apparatus or installation in accordance with the present invention, and

Figure 2 is an. end elevation of the apparatus, viewing the same vfrom the right hand end thereof as shown in Figure 1.

In Figurel of the drawings. I have shown a part of a conventional mill layout for the rolling of sheets, which includes six mill units. These units, for purposes of convenience` are designated A, B, C, D, E and F, respectively. Each of the units is of similar construction and comprises a furnace 2, and a suitable roll stand 3. The discharge end 4 of each of the'furnaces is so located with respect to the roll stands as to facilitate the passage of bars or packs directly from the furnace into the roll pass, while the charging end 5 of each of the furnaces is remote from the roll stand.

Adjacent each of the roll stands there is provided sufficient space S for the piling of rolled sheets 6. A pack of these sheets is shown in position adjacent each roll stand.

Cooperating with all of the roll stands and adapted to pick up the sheets 6 adjacent thereto. is a suitable conveying mechanism, herein illustrated as comprising a crane 7 of the overhead type mounted for longitudinal travel on the rails 8. This crane, which may be of any well known or desired construction. may be quickly moved tto a position adjacent any one of the units for cooling the sheets which have been rolled thereby and conveying the same lo a doubling mechanism 9 located outside of the area occupied by the units.

lVhile the doubling mechanism may be of any desired construction, it conveniently comprises a pair of doubling rolls 10, mounted on asuitable elevated platform l1, which plat-form is of suiicient dimensions to receive a stack 12 of sheets from the conveying mechanism 7. The stack 12 constitutes a reserve supply from which the doubling crew may remove individual sheets as desired and place the same over the doubling rolls 10 wherein they are matched'in any desired manner and then passed between the rolls and doubled about their center lines.- The doubled sheets or packs are then discharged by means of a suitable chute 13 onto a conveying mechanism in the form of a carrier 14, movable along tracks 15.

The desired number of doubled sheets or packs having been loaded onto the carrier 14, it is moved to'its dotted line position of Figure l, wherein the double sheets may be eHectively engaged by a second conveying mechanism 16. This conveying mechanism is preferably similar to the mechanism 7, and comprises an overhead crane travelling on rails 17 located adjacent to but in a plane above the Charging ends 5 of the individual furnaces.

By reason of the construction described, the individual sheets from any one of the units may be carried to a doubling mechanism common to all or a plurality7 of the units, and the sheets doubled and then conveyed either to the same unit or to a different unit. In this manner, the conveying mechanism 16 may deliver at will to any one of the units A, B, C, D, E or F, dependingupon the conditions in the respective furnaces of those units or the number of units which it is desired to operate on the doubled packs. This gives a iexibility of operation which is not obtainable by a standard installation in which an individual doubler is provided for` each unit. This flexibility, however, while `desirable in that it enables each of the furnaces to be operated at maximum efficiency at all times, is of greater desirability b v reason of the fact that a single doubler with a single crew of men may be operated approximately of the time without any interference with the rolling operations and with greater uniformity of results.

To those skilled in the art itwill be apparent that six doubling crews, for example, working approximately 50% of the time, produce results which are not necessarily uniform as compared one with the other. Any non-uniformity in the doubling results in unevenness in the packs and consequently a correspondingly great increase inthe amount of scrap and decrease in the qualit-y of tbe sheets. Not only this, but the doubling individually for the respective units frequently these differences are obviated since the storlll age of the sheets adjacent the respective units lpermits the same to drop in temperature to such a point that they. may be easily handled by the doubler. At the same time, due to their relatively lower temperature, the doubler necessarily performs a correspondingly greater amount of work in effecting the doublin is e ective for loosening stickers producedby the matched rolling.

Furthermore, the same doubling crew is in charge of the doubling of the sheets for all of the units, which insures the furnishing of uniformly doubled sheets or packs to all of the units with consequent greater uniformity in the sheets produced thereby by means of subsequent rolling operations. e

In the case of single iron where no doubling is required, the present invention possesses advantages in that the work progresses smoothly without any interference from the doubling mechanism or the doubling crew.

Insofar as I am aware, it has heretofore' never been proposed to provide a single doubling mechanism eifective lfor serving a plurality of units, nor has it been proposed to provide a doubling mechanism completely outside of the area occupied by such units. I am further not aware that it has heretofore been proposed .to provide conveying i mechanism of such nature that the output of a plurality of units could be conveyed to a single doubler, or conveyed from such doubler to any one of a series .of units as desired. The present invention therefore posjsesses the advantages of a decreased initial cost yof equipment with a corresponding dvxcrease in the subsequent cost of operation and a greater uniformity in the product produced by a series of units.

l While I have herein illustrated.l and described one diagrammatic embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that changes in the construction and arrangement of the parts,v as well. as in the number and location` operation, and this amount of work bein effective for conveyin doubled material rom said doubler to the urnace of any of said units.

2. In a rolling mill, a plurality of units 4 each comprising affurnace anda roll stand, there being a piling space adjacent each roll stand, a conveying mechanism common to all fof said spaces, a doubler adapted to receive sheets from said conveying mechanism, and a second conveying mechanism for delivering doubled sheets from said doubler to any of said furnaces. i

3. In a rolling mill, the combination with a plurality of units each comprising a furnace and a roll stand, of a doubler common to a plurality of said units, and conveying mechanism for delivering sheets from said units to said doubler and from said doubler to said units at will.

4. In a rolling mill, the combination with a purality of'units each comprising a furnace and a roll stand, of a doubler common to a plurality of said units, and conveying mechanism for delivering sheets from said units to said doubler and from said doubler to said units at will, said conveying mechanism comprising a plurality of independent con-V veyors effective respectively adjacent opposite ends of the furnaces.

5. In the method of rolling sheets, the steps comprising separately rolling different sheets in a plurality of similar units, conveying the rolled sheets to a common point, doubling the sheets at such point, and thereafter distributing the sheets to the dilferent units for re-rolling.

6. In the method of rolling sheets, the steps comprising separately rolling different sheets in rany one of a. plurality of similar units, storing the rolled sheets adjacent said units, collecting the stored sheets and conveyingV the same to a common point, maintaining a reserve adjacent said point, removing sheetstrom said reserve and doubling the same, and thereafter distributing the doubled sheets to any of said units.

7. In the method of rolling sheets, the steps comprising collecting sheets as rolled by a plurality of different units, conveying said sheets to a common point, maintaining :llov

a reserve at such point, drawing from said my hand.

RAYMOND J. WEAN. 

